Foxgloves to Remain Open Under New Proposals for Respite Care- Cllr David Sawyer

Foxgloves respite centre is set to remain open after Bedford Borough Council produced new plans for sustainable provision of respite care in the area. The new plans have been produced after close consultation with parents and users of the centre. Cllr David Sawyer, Liberal Democrat Portfolio Holder for Children's Services, said, "This process has been about finding a sustainable way to provide respite care services and by working with families involved and staff of the centre we have found a way to do this which involves keeping Foxgloves open. These proposals will now come to the Council's Executive in December.

"The idea of any consultation is to listen to the people who use a service, look at what resources you need to provide it and do it as effectively and efficiently as possible.

"What has fundamentally changed the landscape with this proposal is that Parents, Staff, Officers and myself as the Councillor responsible have all worked together to find innovative ways to deliver the service. It has been brilliant to see the families who use the facility at Foxgloves sit down with the Council and work together to find possible solutions. This just shows how creating positive working relationships can benefit all involved."

The key outcomes would be:

• That all families will still have access to the same number of nights respite care, provided at Foxgloves.

• The currently empty beds that have put pressure on resources will now be available for children with disabilities in long term care so that they can be looked after nearer their families. The financial saving will help make Foxgloves sustainable and enable direct support for more families with disabled children.

• There will be fewer staff made redundant, reducing the impact on families in the Borough and saving more money short term by not having to pay redundancy costs.

Mayor Dave Hodgson said, "We are still a new Council with a new leadership that is serious about working with residents to find the best solutions for effective and efficient service delivery. These are exciting new plans for Foxgloves which could prove to be an extremely positive outcome from our partnership working. This has only been possible because we were one of the first Councils in the country to put our plans in the public domain, allowing us to have a genuine, open dialogue with local residents."